Pressure plate for label-sheet feed means



g 22, 1957 K, R. SCHNEIDER 3,337,383

PRESSURE PLATE FQR LABELSHEET FEED MEANS Filed April 28, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 ATTORNEY INVENTOR @957 K. R. SCHNEIDER 3,337,383

PRESSURE PLATE FOR LABEL-SHEET FEED MEANS Filed April 28, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY 22, 1967 K R. SCHNEIDER PRESSURE PLATE FOR LABEL'SHEET FEED MEANS 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed April 28, 1965 H QK @h we G H i l \AX MWQF W N EN I N VEN TOR I KU/F? R5CH/VE/DCW;

ATTORNEY Aug. 22, 1967 K. R. SCHNEIDER 3,337,383

PRESSURE PLATE FOR LABEL-SHEET FEED MEANS Filed April 28, 1965 4 Sheets- Sheet 4 ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,337,383 PRESSURE PLATE FOR LABEL-SHEET FEED MEANS Kurt Rudolf Schneider, 4 Juliand St, Bainbridge, N.Y.- 13733 Filed Apr. 28, 1965, Ser. No. 451,460 7 Claims. (Cl. 156-363) This invention relates to improvements in a pressure plate for label-sheet feed means of the general type used in label-applying machines according to my Patent No. 2,754,022 and application Ser. No. 80,778, filed Jan. 5, 1961, now Patent No. 3,252,849.

In machines of this type, articles to .be labeled, usually mailing pieces such as envelopes, letters, postcards and the like, are advanced oneby-one at an essentially constant speed to a cyclically operating punch mechanism, to which a label sheet, usually comprising a sheet made up of a plurality of individual labels or label areas arranged inadjacent, vertical rows, but which may also comprise a single long strip of said labels or label areas, is also fed but in a path normal to that of the advancing mailing pieces and with a step-by-step motion, said punch mechanism during its operating cycle functioning in the first instance to sever each then topmost label of. the righthand row or strip thereof and thereupon to apply the severed label by pressing it against a previously wetted area of an advancing mailing piece. The preferred labelsheet feed means is of the type employing a pair of cyclically operable, reciprocating shuttle bars disposed immediately below the label sheet (in grooves provided therefor in the top plate of the machine across which the label sheet or strip is fed) and which are provided along their length with a plurality of upwardly disposed, teethlike projections which progressively move into vertically aligned perforations in the sheet or strip, thereby on each cycle of their movement feeding said sheet or strip forwardly a distance of one label or label area, and a pressure plate disposed above and resting on the label sheet or strip with the requisite pressure as to insure proper action of the shuttle bars as they partake of their sheetfeeding stroke and the requisite friction as to hold the label sheet or strip stationary as said shuttle bars partake of their return or retracting stroke.

Stated broadly, a major object of the present invention is both to simplify the design and to improve the performance of a label-sheet pressure plate as aforesaid, as compared to the earlier designs thereof shown in my aforesaid Patent No. 2,754,022 and application Ser, No. 80,778.

More particularly, the invention contemplates and provides a pressure plate for label-sheet or strip feed means of the stated character and which is substantially unaffected by temperature and humidity conditions of either or both the atmosphere and the paper sheets being fed and which is furthermore not subject to deformation due to warpage.

Another important object of the invention is the provision of a pressure plate for label-sheet or strip feed means of the stated character, which incorporates within its structure highly effective means in the form of floating guide shoes extending along both side edges of the pressure plate proper and which rest of their own weight on label-edge portions immediately adjacent those being worked upon by the reciprocating shuttle bars in manner as to prevent same from curving or curling upwardly out of contact with the tooth-like projections of said shuttle bars as can cause feeding failure, but whose weight is so calculated that they do not impose too much pressure upon the label sheet or strip as a whole as could result in its being carried rearwardly by said shuttle bars as the latter move throughout their retracting stroke.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a label-sheet pressure plate for a label-sheet feed means of the above-stated character which incorporates floating guide shoes as aforesaid, wherein the guide shoes are further so mounted that they will always exercise enough downward pressure on the last label of the row or strip then being acted upon by the shuttle bars as insures that said shuttle bars will be as effective in feeding said last label to the punch mechanism as they are in feeding the higher-level labels of said row.

The above and other objects and features of advantage of the improved pressure plate for label-sheet or strip feed means according to the present invention will appear or be obvious from the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment thereof incorporated into a label-applying machine, wherein:

FIGS. 1 and 2 are generalized top plan and side elevational views of such a machine;

FIG. 3 is a section taken substantially on line 33 of FIG. 1 but on a larger scale;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view looking down on an improved pressure plate of the invention shown to be disposed in pressure engagement with the labels or label areas of the righthand row thereof of a partially shown label sheet assumed to be supported on the top plate of the machine and being fed to the punch mechanism of the machine by a pair of reciprocatab'le shuttle bars disposed beneath said righthand row of labels or label areas;

FIG. 5 is a section taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a section taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a side elevation, and FIG. 8 is a perspective view taken from the left front corner of the improved pressure plate; and

FIG. 9 is a detail view illustrating certain parts making up the improved pressure plate of the invention separated from one another.

In said drawings, FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a labelapplying machine generally according to my aforesaid Patent No. 2,754,022 and application Ser. No. 80,778, but which additionally incorporates the improved pressure plate for the label-sheet feed means according to the present invention. Using in so far as possible the same reference characters and/ or numerals as were used in said patent and application in describing said machine, reference character BH designates a base housing having a top plate TP over which a label sheet L (alternatively a long label strip) is adapted to be fed in crosswise direction to the length of the machine with a step-by-step motion to a punch mechanism PM, preferably of the improved design thereof disclosed and claimed in my concurrently filed application Ser. No. 451,469, entitled Punch Mechanism for Labeling Machines." Resting on the right side portion of the label sheet (or on the label strip proper) which is generally in line with the punch mechanism is a label pressure plate assembly generally designated SHQ mounting a label-sensing switch LSS thereon.

At its mailing-piece feed-in end, the base housing mounts a table TR supporting upstanding side-guide plates GP, between which a stack E of mailing pieces to be labeled, i.e. envelopes, postcards and the like, may be placed, said table also supporting a forward guide-plate GF against which the forward edges of the mailing pieces of the stack are held while each then lowermost mailing piece is withdrawn by suitable feed-in means for its subsequent advancement to the punch mechanism PM along a path extending lengthwise of the machine. Inasmuch as said feed-in means in its various aspects is disclosed in my prior Patent No. 2,907,567, reference may be had thereto for a more detailed description of the structure and operation thereof should such be found necessary.

The mailing-piece feed-in means delivers the individual mailing pieces withdrawn from the stack E to mailingpiece feed-through means which is preferably of the type disclosed and claimed in my application Ser. No. 451,468, filed concurrently herewith. Sufiice it to say at this point that said feedthrough means includes a conveyor-belt stage S (FIG. 3) which advances the individual mailing pieces at an essentially constant speed to and past the punch mechanism PM, and that the latter, during the course of each cycle of its movement, first severs the then topmost label or label area of the righthand row of the rows thereof making up the label sheet (or of the strip if the labels are supplied in strip form) and then applies the severed label to an area of a mailing-piece advanced thereto by said feed-through means and which has been wetted by cyclically operating wetting means WM (FIGS. 1 and 2) driven from said punch mechanism.

The now labeled mailing pieces leaving the punch are advanced to the forward end of the machine and are finally discharged therefrom by run-out means constituting the discharge end of the aforesaid feed-through means and which is represented by the outermost discharge roller 202 (FIGS. 1 and 2). Reference is had to my aforesaid concurrently filed application for further details of the structure and operation of the aforesaid generally described mailing-piece feed-through means.

Reverting to the label sheet L, it will be understood by reference to FIGS. 1 and 4 that such illustratively comprises a sheet of letter-size paper gummed on its under surface and which is divided, preferably by vertical and horizontal lines of small perforations, into a plurality of severable labels or label areas arranged in vertical rows, three such rows being shown by way of example, with each label or label area being of a size to receive the name and address of a person or concern to whom a particular labeled mailing piece is to be mailed. The label sheet is also provided along the horizontal lines of small perforations dividing the labels of the vertical rows thereof with (two per individual label width) laterally spaced-apart, preferably diamond-shaped, large perforations 1 p into which partly diamond-shaped upward teeth-like projections p provided on the cyclically operable, reciprocating shuttle bars LFB of the label sheet feed means and which are spaced from one another along the length of said bars a distance corresponding to the spacing between any two adjacent and vertically aligned perforations 2 or p are adapted to project, whereby said bars having a stroke also equaling said spacing will advance the label sheet to the punch mechanism PM the height of one label or label area with each cycle of their reciprocatory motion. Said cyclically operable shuttle bars and the means for reciprocating same in timed relation to the punch mechanism PM are disclosed in detail in my aforesaid Patent No. 2,754,072 and application Ser. No. 80,778, but such are also generally shown herein in FIGS. 3, 5 and 6. Of said views, FIG. 5 shows that said shuttle bars LFB reciprocate in grooves opening through the top surface of the machine top plate TP, in which they are retained by strips 165, preferably containing a lubricant; and FIGS. 5 and 6 show the upward teeth or projections p provided at the aforesaid spaced distances along the length of said bars and which engage in the diamondshaped apertures 2 and p in the label sheet or strip. On the other hand, FIG. 3 shows that reciprocatory motion is imparted to said shuttle bars via a pitman link 160 connected at one end to a cross head 160a extending between and afiixed to the under sides of the shuttle bars and at its other end to a crank pin 161 on a gear 162 in mesh with a gear 60 fast on the driven head assembly 56 of a clutch mechanism having its driving element 50 afiixed to the continuously rotating drive shaft AC, all as generally shown in FIG. 2. The aforesaid clutch mechanism 50, 56 is preferably of the improved design dis- 4 closed and claimed in my concurrently filed application entitled Intermittent Driving Mechanism, Ser. No. 451,563, now Patent No. 3,305,056 to which reference may be had to further details.

Referring now to the aforesaid label-sheet pressure plate SHQ according to the improved design thereof constituting the subject-matter of the present invention, such by reference to FIGS. 8 and 9, essentially comprises a plate member of elongated rectangular configuration; a hinge frame consisting of a pair of spaced-apart side arms 102, 104 fixedly secured as by screws 106 to the longitudinal side edges of said plate member; and side pairs of tandem-related floating guide shoes 108a, 1081) and 110a, 11%, carried by said frames and being spaced laterally outwardly therefrom. By the word floating as herein used is meant that the guide shoes may find their own level and thereupon rest of their own weight on the label sheet or strip when placed thereon.

As best seen in FIG. 3, the plate member 100 has length which may be a little less than the height dimension of the label sheet L and width also less by a small amount than the lateral spacing between the perforations 17 p of the same row of strip of labels. Thus, it will be seen that the plate member 100 is of a predetermined width such that it will rest only on the body portions of the labels or label areas of a vertical row thereof which extend between the diamond-shaped perforations p 1 of the same label row.

According to a further feature of the invention, the pressure plate member 100 is fashioned from a material having weight and low-slippage properties such that, when resting on a row of labels as aforesaid, it will exert thereon the amount of friction which is requisite to the plate member holding the label sheet or strip as a whole stationary during the return or back motion of the shuttle bars LFB following each preceding sheet-feeding stroke thereof, without however being of the order as would result in the pressure plate impeding the advance motion of the label sheet or label strip by the shuttle bar projections p as the shuttle bars move throughout their working or sheet-advancing stroke. One material satisfying the above requirements of the pressure plate member 100 is sheet Formica (preferably black in color) of one-quarter inch thickness, of the type used for insulating boards and panels and which may be otherwise defined as a high pressure plastic laminate, which material, in addition to possessing the required weight and low slippage characteristics as above, in use has been found to provide the further advantage of being unaffected by temperature and/or humidity conditions of the atmosphere and in particular by the residual humidity of the paper making up the label sheets.

The side arms 102, 104 constituting the aforesaid hinge frame are preferably formed by stamping same from coldrolled steel sheet of approximately 7 thickness, and they are secured on edge to the side edges of the pressure plate member 100 in such relative vertical position with respect to the latter that their bottom edges are disposed slightly above the underface of said plate member and thus the side arms never make contact with the label sheet. However, the vertical dimension of said side arms 102, 104, particularly in their rearward end portions, is substantially greater than the thickness of said pressure plate member 100 whereby, when secured to the relatively thin plate member, said side arms provide a lightweight rigid frame therefor aiding to prevent deformation of said plate member due to warpage or other causes.

As best seen in FIGS. 7 and 8, the rearward ends of the frame side arms 102, 104- are extended beyond and swept upwardly from the rearward end of the pressure plate member 100 a sufficient distance as enables said arms acting in unison also to function as a separatable hinge frame for cooperation with a fixed hinge pin or pintle 530 disposed above the machine top plate TP near and parallel to the edge thereof over which the label sheets L are introduced. For this purpose, the terminal rearward portions of said extended arm-ends are formed as downwardly opening hooks 102a, 104a which are adapted to separably hook to said fixed hinge pin 530. Preferably, the hook slots or openings extend along rearward-ascending arcs as shown, which arrangement is designed to prevent any accidental falling away of the pressure plate assembly from the machine top plate TP when the latter is swung upwardly from its normal position in which it is shown, to a position enabling access to the interior parts or mechanism contained in the base housing BH.

As is also seen in FIG. 7, the upper edges of the side arms 102, 104 incline downwardly from their hook-shaped rearward ends to near their forward ends with a gradual taper, and thence taper sharply to their forward end edges which have height not exceeding the thickness of the Formica plate member 100. Parenthetically, and referring to FIG. 3, this latter thickness is such as enables the forward-end edge portion of the plate member to extend into the housing slot of the punch mechanism PM as defined by the upper surface of the front cutting die 266 and the lower edge of the housing front cover 252, such for reasons explained in my aforesaid application Ser. No. 80,788 and restated in my aforesaid concurrently filed application entitled Punch Mechanism. Preferably also, the forward end edges of both the side arms.

and the Formica plate member coincide and are finished with identically radiused edges.

Although it was earlier said that the pressure plate assembly is hinged to the top plate via the aforesaid hinge pin 530, it is to be understood that said pin is not intended to nor does it normally carry any of the weight of said assembly. Instead, the hook slots or openings provided in upwardly extended rearward ends of the hinge arms are so dimensioned in relation to the diameter of the hinge pin that the weight of the plate assembly is taken wholly by the top plate TP or by any label sheet or strip L interposed between the top plate on the plate assembly.

Said hinge pin 530 may also mount thereon a rubbersurfaced roller LFR contained in the space between the hinge arms 102, 104. As also explained in my aforesaid application Ser. No. 80,778, said roller serves as a manual means for initially feeding the label sheet L or strip forwardly towards the punch mechanism to a position such that the shuttle bars LFB can take over the feed thereof when their actuation is initiated.

Like the side arms 102, 104, the aforesaid guide shoes 108a, 108b, 110a, 1101: are preferably stamped out of sheet metal, i.e. tool steel, and are mounted on edge, but they dilTer from the side arms in that their configuration resembles that of a sled runner and they have length only approximately half that of the plate member 100. There being too such guide shoes arranged in tandum on each side of said plate member, the two more forward shoes 108a, 110a are mounted lengthwise of said member in position such that their forward end edges extend to the front-end edges of the plate member and the side arms 102, 104 secured thereto, and the upper-edge portions of said two forward shoes adjacent their front-end edges are sloped downwardly and radiuscd to have the same configuration as that of the upper edges of the side arms adjacent their forward end edges. The two rearward guide shoes 10812, 11012 are disposed just to the rear of and are slightly spaced from the forward shoes so that the shoes of each side pair thereof may act independently of one another. It is observed that the bottom edges of all guide shoes are upwardly sloped throughout their rearward-length portions approximately as a sled runner is upwardly sloped throughout its forward-length portion.

It is a special feature of the invention that the side pairs of guide shoes 108a, 1081; and 110a, 1101: are spaced laterally outwardly from, i.e. to the sides of, the plate member and its hinge frame, a distance such said shoes will run or track on the extreme side-edge portions of the labels or label areas of the label row thereof whose body portions are being pressed on by the pressure plate. More particularly, said guide shoes will press down on said labels or label areas along lines which are disposed just outwardly of the diamond-shaped perforations p p of said rows. And as previously stated, said guide shoes are independently mounted for vertical floating movement whereby they rest of their own weight on said label-edge portions on which they track. Thus, it becomes possible, by imparting to the guide shoes the right amount of weight, to utilize said shoes as a means for holding the outer side-edge portions of the labels or label areas of the label-sheet row being acted upon by the shuttle bars LFB against upwardly curling movement from the shuttle bar teeth or projections p (which they tend to do) as may cause feeding failure, without at the same time creating interference to the retracting movement of the shuttle bars independently of the label sheet or strip between each two sheet-feeding strokes thereof.

More particularly, the shoes 108a, 1081) and 110a, 1101) are each spaced laterally outwardly from the pressure plate and its hinge-frame side arms 102, 104 by spacer bushings 114 (two per shoe) which, by reference to FIG. 9, are afiixed to said arms by screws 116 extending through holes provided therefor in said shoes and bushings and threading into tapped holes provided therefor in said arms. To enable the shoes to float vertically, said spacer bushings have reduced-diameter outer ends 118 of axial length slightly greater than the thickness or gauge of the shoes, and the holes 120 in the shoes through which said reduced-diameter ends pass are vertically elongated. Spaced lock-washers 122 of about the same external diameter as the spacer-bushing body portion are held against the end faces of the reduced-diameter outer-end portions of said bushings by said screws 116, thereby securing the shoes in place between the shoulders separating the body and reduced-diameter end portions of the spacer bushings and the shoulders defined by the inner faces of the lock washers 122. However, the shoes may move vertically as permitted by the elongation of the holes through which said reduced-diameter end portions of the spacer bushings pass, and thus may rest of their own weight on any label sheet or label-sheet portion on which the pressure-plate assembly is placed.

Another advantage of the above described floating shoe mounting and arrangement, stemming particularly from the positioning of the forward shoes 108a, a so that their forward-end edges extend to the very forward line of the plate member 100 and side arms 102, 104, is that the last label of a row thereof moving into the punch mechanism will be held fiat by said forward shoes, just as the label or label areas above same were held flat, while being pushed forward by the most forward shuttle-bar teeth or projections p Hereto, the movement of the last label of the row thereof feeding to the punch mechanism PM was at best uncertain, since it was subject to cocking or twisting. This uncertainty is done away with by the described shoe arrangement, since the last label of a row thereof can no more cock or twist than could the upper labels of said row.

The aforesaid label sensing switch LSS is contained in a switch housing fixedly secured against the top face of the Formica plate member 100 and it has a forwardly projecting sensing arm 182 whose free end inclines downwardly and terminates in a sensing finger which operates in a through opening 184 provided therefor in the forwardcentral end-portion of said plate member and is positioned so that it can sense the presence or absence of a label beneath same. Although forming no part of the present invention, it will be understood that said sensing switch is a normally open micro switch which closes when the presence of a label sheet is sensed by its finger 182. Said label sensing switch LSS together with other switches (not shown), particularly a mailing-piece (envelope) sensing switch ESS associated with the conveyor belt stage S (FIG. 3), are components of a machine operating and cycling control circuit described in detail in my aforesaid application Ser. No. 80,778 and forming no part of the present invention.

As many changes could be made in carrying out the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. A pressure plate for use with label-sheet feed means of the reciprocatable type and serving to feed said sheet with a step-by-step motion across a fixed supporting surface to a punch mechanism, comprising: an elongated rectangular plate member adapted to rest flat on a predetermined width portion of the labels of a vertical row thereof making up said sheet either alone or in conjunction with connected rows, hinge means carried by said plate member cooperative with hinge-pin means for locating said plate member in operative position with respect to said supporting surface and feed means, shoes carried by said plate member, same shoes being spaced laterally outwardly from the plate member a distance such that said shoes extend along the outermost edge portions of the labels of said vertical row, and means mounting said shoes in a maner enabling them to rest of their own weight on said outermost edge portions, the plate member being fashioned from a material having weight and low slippage properties such that said member is effective to hold the label sheet from moving with said feed means as the latter partakes of its non-feed stroke but not such as to retard feed-in movement of the label sheet with said feed means as it partakes of its feed-in stroke.

2. A pressure plate according to claim 1, wherein said shoes have a runner-like configuration and are disposed on edge.

3. A pressure plate according to claim 1, wherein said shoes are arranged in side pairs and the shoes of the pairs are in tandem.

4. A pressure plate according to claim 1, wherein said shoes have runner-like configuration and are arranged in side pairs and the shoes of the pair are in tandem.

5. A pressure plate according to claim 1, wherein said shoes extend to the front edge line of said plate member.

6. A pressure plate according to claim 1, wherein said shoes are arranged in side pairs and the shoes of the side pairs are in tandem and the forward shoes extend to the front edge line of said plate member.

7. A pressure plate according to claim 1, wherein said plate member is made of Formica and said guide shoes are made of metal.

No references cited.

EARL M. BERGERT, Primary Examiner.

I. P. MELOCI-IE, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A PRESSURE PLATE FOR USE WITH LABEL-SHEET FEED MEANS OF THE RECIPROCATABLE TYPE AND SERVING TO FEED SAID SHEET WITH A STEP-BY-STEP MOTION ACROSS A FIXED SUPPORTING SURFACE TO A PUNCH MECHANISM, COMPRISING: AN ELONGATED RECTANGULAR PLATE MEMBER ADAPTED TO REST FLAT ON A PREDETERMINED WIDTH PORTION OF THE LABELS OF A VERTICAL ROW THEREOF MAKING UP WITH SHEET EITHER ALONE OR IN CONJUNCTION WTH CONNECTED ROWS, HINGE MEANS CARRIED BY SAID PLATE MEMBER COOPERATIVE WITH HINGE-PIN MEANS FOR LOCATING SAID PLATE MEMBER IN OPERATIVE POSITION WITH RESPECT TO SAID SUPPORTING SURFACE AND FEED MEANS, SHOES CARRIED BY SAID PLATE MEMBER, SAME SHOES BEING SPACED LATERALLY OUTWARDLY FROM THE PLATE MEMBER A DISTANCE SUCH THAT SAID SHOES EXTEND ALONG THE OUTERMOST EDGE PORTIONS OF THE LABELS OF SAID VERTICAL ROW, AND MEANS MOUNTING SAID SHOES IN A MANER ENABLING THEM TO REST OF THEIR OWN WEIGHT ON SAID OUTERMOST EDGE PORTIONS, THE PLATE MEMBER BEING FASHIONED FROM A MATERIAL HAVING WEIGHT AND LOW SLIPPAGE PROPERTIES SUCH THAT SAID MEMBER IS EFFECTIVE TO HOLD THE LABEL SHEET FROM MOVING WITH SAID FEED MEANS AS THE LATTER PARTAKES OF ITS NON-FEED STROKE BUT NOT SUCH AS TO RETARD FEED-IN MOVEMENTS OF THE LABEL SHEET WITH SAID FEED MEANS AS IT PARTAKES OF ITS FEED-IN STROKE. 